Introduction
Prepositions are essential because they provide additional details about the sentence.
Adjectives are determiners that can be placed in two different positions within a sentence to modify or describe a person or a thing. Certain adjectives are used only with specific prepositions.
Form
The most commonly used prepositions which follow certain adjectives are at, for, in, of and to.
Examples of adjectives which precede these prepositions in sentences are:
- angry, bad, brilliant, good, lucky, present, slow, terrible… + at + …
- famous, grateful, known, prepared, responsible, sorry… + for + …
- dressed, interested, involved, skilled… + in + …
- afraid, ashamed, aware, bad, difficult, full, jealous, made, proud, scared, tired… + of + …
- addicted, connected, engaged, friendly, grateful, limited, married, polite… + to + …
Example
- I was angry at him for not telling me the truth.
- She is good at drawing.
- He is known for having written a successful book.
- We are very sorry for your loss.
- I’m interested in modern art.
- She is involved in promoting modern music.
- You are full of energy.
- The director is very proud of his movie.
- I think I’m addicted to music.
- My sister is married to an English photographer.
Use
We use some prepositions with certain adjectives in order to express something, but there are no grammatical rules on how to combine them in a sentence.
Summary
Prepositions are important as they provide additional information about the sentence. We can use certain adjectives only with specific prepositions. There is no rule regarding this topic, therefore you need to learn them by heart.
The most commonly used are:
- angry, bad, brilliant, good, lucky, present, slow, terrible… + at + …
- famous, known, prepared, responsible, sorry… + for + …
- dressed, interested, involved, skilled… + in + …
- bad, difficult, full, jealous, made, scared, tired… + of + …
- addicted, connected, friendly, limited, polite… + to + …
For example:
— “She is good at being a good friend.” = We always use good with the preposition at.
— “I am responsible for the adverts.” = We always use responsible with the preposition for.
Let’s revise this content within the {Form} section. Take a look at the {Example} section that shows its use within a context.